Street still not plowed

Here's an email that I just received...

Brad wrote: Dear Neighbors,

I know it's been an extremely frustrating few days for many of you. My staff has been hard at work, trying to help the scores of people who have contacted my office while I’ve been on my way back from out of town.

From the many of you who have e-mailed or called, I know that the snow (and car and bus) removal seems to be taking much longer than usual. We are still following up with the Department of Sanitation to address some of the major streets in the district (including Henry Street, Prospect Park West, McDonald Ave, and Cortelyou Road in Kensington) and have passed many of your requests about other streets on to them as well.

Unfortunately, we now hear that it may not be until the end of Wednesday before some streets in our neighborhood are plowed, even for the first time. (FYI-- alternate side parking remains suspended for Wednesday).

If your street hasn't been plowed or if there is a sidewalk that needs attention, my office has set up an online form at www.bradlander.com/snow. You can also e-mail us at [email protected], or call us at (718) 499-1090.

You should try 311 first, but I know they have been overwhelmed, and slow to respond. I know that one more web-form is NOT what you need if you’re still stuck on your street – but we will do our best to follow up to requests submitted at www.bradlander.com/snow. Of course, if there is an emergency, you should call 911.

The City Council has set up a hearing to review the City’s response to this storm for January 10th at 1pm. We’ll be asking questions about what happened, why the response seems so inadequate in so many neighborhoods across the city, and what needs to be done for the future. I’ll be eager to hear your stories – however frustrating – as we prepare for that hearing.

In the meantime, good luck. And thanks so much to all of you who have helped your neighbors get through the storm and dig out afterwards!

--Brad

A snow plow came down my block [Midwood, between Bedford & Rogers] at about 8 this morning, got stuck, backed out, and left a wall of snow blocking the street about 175' east of Bedford.

What really bothers me is the amount of snow I've consistently found at every train station I've used. The MTA can't shovel stairwells?

it's really pretty stunning-- every year, every snowstorm, the buildings by the botanic garden shovel their sidewalks, but the MTA can't get it done in front of the entrance. What exactly do the station attendants who don't sell metrocards do?

If the MTA was a woman a buddy of mine was dating I would have told him eons ago, "She doesn't love you dude. Drop her, or replace her. She's gonna break your heart. Get rid of her before it's too late."

I think the MTA's consistent lacking is a structural issue. They likely don't have a system in place that takes care of snow when it falls, because this always happens with them. Or if they do, it's not a very good one.

I'm inclined to retract my earlier 'presumption of innocence' for the city given a jogging of my memory, and reading what others have to say about the failings of the city. Does anyone recall in days of yore when one would hear the clink-clink-clink of those sanitation truck's chained wheels laying down salt before big storms? Does anyone recall that happening in their neighborhood this year? I don't. I vacillate: maybe this is a symptom of the city's lack of money; maybe the lack of preparation, is because the city could not afford it.

All I know is it sucks big time.

Bloomberg just said in his new conference that the hope is that all of the streets in Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island will be plowed by 7am tomorrow morning.

i suspect its the unions getting back at the city.

HouseBroken: the plow is on the block trying right now. my car is on the side being shoveled in but I know I can get some help.

One weird side consequence to all of this snow is that it had closed down the methadone clinic which resides behind the laundromat at the corner of Franklin and Park Place. I saw a few people make attempts to go there, but turn back because it wasn't open.

Well, if they did, they would not be able to redeem it at Crow Hill Jewelry. That place had yet to shovel their walkway.

Isn't this heartbreaking?

I assume somewhere the mayor has a map of the city, and on it are all of the hospitals, nursing homes, dialysis centers, methadone clinics, etc. And that in circumstances where inclement weather threatens to disrupt norms the city has plans to ensure that this will not happen, no?

If they do, then they did not employ them. Major faux pas here.

Dec. 2010 in NYC has been a very interesting winter to say the least.

Wether it's an incompetent, arrogant mayor - a bloated pompous Sanitation Union - angry, rogue sanitation supervisers demanding their workers "to go slow" in retaliation to budget cuts and/or some entity not yet named.., I hope the truth comes out to what were the reasons behind this slow and deadly clean up.

People should not have died because of political infighting and/or ineffecient planning on anyones part.

R.I.P. every needless casualty to this non storm of 2010.